Wormwood is the teacher/advisor/overlord of Screwtape. He sets out to advise Screwtape of the best way to tempt and coerce a human out of the path of living for Christ. A lovely, funny, backwards way to be inspired to look within yourself and examine your thoughts and habits to find what is behind them. ( )

This is a series of letters from a fairly major demon to his nephew, advising him on how to corrupt a mortal and prepare them for Hell. This particular version of Hell being a very 1940s Church of England version. I imagine not a lot changes in versions between the decades but perhaps it does between different interpretations of Christianity. I'm the wrong person to ask.

The letters reveal a good deal about Lewis's ideas about theology and he covers sex, love, pride, gluttony and war, among a few other things. The latter half of the letters take place during the Second World War and here the importance of cowardice and courage are discussed in detail. The book is very much a guide from Lewis, to Christians, on what not to do if they would like to go to Heaven.

It's engaging and thought provoking and I can see it making good material for a radio drama or a short series of podcasts. However, I think my background in the teachings of the Church of England is a bit too slim for me to have picked up on a lot of the messages there. No doubt they would be even more interesting to someone who had spent a little time with the church. ( )

Lewis does make the occasional remarks I don't agree with (for example, certain tendencies toward universalism and the concept of "Limbo"/purgatory), but overall--I mean, I was reading this intermittently, for the most part, while watching the rare TV show I'm enjoying at the moment, and God still cut me to the heart and brought tears to my eyes at various deep truths from this book. It's solid. ( )

Please do not combine this LT work with any abridged edition, or with any edition that includes Lewis' additional piece, "Screwtape Proposes a Toast." Each of these variants should be combined only with similar LT works. Thank you.

Wikipedia in English (1)

C. S. Lewis was one of the greatest Christian Writers of our age. His "Screwtape Letters" still stirs considerable controversy. He wrote from the perspective of a devil giving advice to another devil in how to tempt a Christian. In doing so, he reveals to us how we let evil into our own lives. Lewis's work has influenced three generations of Christian thinkers and will continue to be a seminal Christian work.